iPhone 6S is in production, front panel identical to the 6

Images of the next iPhone's front panel in an Apple factory have leaked. They show that Apple has begun mainstream production of its next flagship device, expected to arrive in a couple of months, although it looks identical to the current iPhone 6.

As SlashGear reports, Nowhereelse.fr revealed images from its factory sources that show Apple workers preparing the production of iPhone 6S front panels. With the phone expected to be unveiled in September, it isn't really surprising that mass production has now begun.

Nowhereelse could not confirm whether the display uses Apple's Force Touch technology, although it is highly probable it will. Rumours that the panel may finally be made of sapphire glass are less likely to turn out true. Again, Nowhereelse can't shed any light on the matter, having only seen the front panels.

The panels in the images appear to be identical to that of the iPhone 6. The holes for the speaker and front camera are in the same locations and the 4.7-inch size remains the same. The situation is expected to be the same for the 6S Plus, although no images of that handset have been revealed yet.

All of the changes for the 6S are expected to be made under the hood, with the introduction of Force Touch being the star new feature. The camera may get an upgrade to 12MP from 8MP and Apple is expected to introduce a new rose gold colour option to satisfy people with the rose gold Apple Watch.

The phone is also likely to get a performance increase, courtesy of a faster A9 processor and 2GB of RAM. The usage of a new radio chip will improve mobile data speeds and lead to increased battery life.

Otherwise, the 6S will be the usual incremental upgrade to last year's iPhone 6. More wide-ranging changes, including cosmetic ones to the exterior, are likely to show up next year on the iPhone 7.

The first images of the display panels showing up now suggest that production is running to schedule. Early manufacturing was reported to have started last month with full-scale assembly commencing around now, allowing Apple fans to get their hands on the finished product in around two months.